Transgressions
by wonderbug
Summary: With her friends' lives hanging in the balance, Kagome agrees to Sesshoumaru's demands and sets about righting a wrong she committed on the day they first met. But her crimes against the demon lord run far deeper than she ever could have imagined, and his dark obsession is only the beginning... S x K, CU/AR. R&R!
1. Chapter One

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Inuyasha.**

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**Transgressions - Chapter One**

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"Look, Kagome-chan—a village!"

Kagome followed Sango's pointing finger, spotting thin wisps of smoke rising in the distance, just beyond the edge of the forest. As they crested the hill before them, she saw huts and even a few larger houses clustered in the valley below, flanked by a large grid of rice paddies.

She grinned, sharing in Sango's excitement. Finally, they'd be able to sleep on an actual _bed_ for a change! For the past week or so, they'd been forced to camp out in the wilderness, and every muscle in Kagome's body was screaming bloody murder.

Of course, she couldn't blame her achiness _entirely_ on her poor sleeping arrangements. In fact, she could hardly blame them at all.

_Sleep_, Kagome thought ruefully, _Kami knows how little of _that_ I've been getting recently_.

As if on cue, she felt a prickle at the edges of her senses, and she paused, gripping the handlebars of her bicycle tightly. After a moment, she felt it again—stronger this time. A tendril of youki extending outward from the darkness of the forest, brushing against her, trailing like a finger down her spine.

Kagome shivered, shutting her eyes.

When a hand fell on her shoulder, she nearly screamed.

"Kagome-chan, are you all right?" Sango asked, looking at her in concern.

"Oh, I-I'm fine!" Kagome stammered, laughing nervously as she fought to regain her calm. "Perfectly fine! I was just, uh, lost in thought."

Sango studied her for a moment longer, brown eyes narrowed slightly in suspicion, before she nodded slowly and turned away. As she left, Kagome let out a breath of relief, sagging forward against the handlebars. Her heart was still pounding like crazy.

_Stupid nerves_, she muttered inwardly, resuming her course.

She eased her bike over a large tree root—hopefully for the last time _ever_—and as the trees thinned at last to grass, she gave a whoop of joy and swung herself into the seat. Kicking forward with a burst of energy she didn't know she had, Kagome quickly overtook the rest of the group, shooting past them down the hill.

"Hey—watch it, woman!" Inuyasha yelled.

She glanced back to see him jumping up and down next to Kikyou like an angry flea. Laughing, she stuck her tongue out at him and pedaled harder, sending up a cloud of dust as she merged onto a dirt road at the bottom of the hill.

The village huts grew larger and larger, but Kagome didn't slow down in the least. She sped through the village square, darting past shocked-looking farmers and causing a small flock of chickens to suddenly take wing. Their affronted clucks followed her out of town.

For miles and miles, she raced on, over hills and plains, through rice paddies and another quaint little village. She felt alive and light and free, and for the first time in what seemed like forever, she actually started to believe she _was_ free. Free from the pressures of shard-hunting and final exams. Free from stupid hanyous and dead ex-girlfriends that _insisted_ on hanging around. Free from—

Kagome's hands slammed down on the brakes. She pitched forward violently, the abruptness of the stop nearly sending her over the handlebars. Her head spun from left to right as she rapidly surveyed her surroundings, seeing nothing unusual.

Sweat broke out on her palms. The fine hairs on her neck stood on end. Around her, the air was quiet and still. _Too_ quiet.

She swallowed, trying to ignore the eeriness that enveloped her. Trying to pretend that it was all in her mind, that the flash of white she'd glimpsed earlier had just been a figment of her imagination.

But this silence…there was a strange heaviness in it. It seemed to brood, weighing upon her like a loathsome burden, suffocating her with its presence.

_I'm being watched_, she admitted to herself in grim resignation.

She wanted to scream—in frustration, in anger. She'd been so frightened for so long that she was just plain sick of it. Of _him_.

She glared into the thicket of trees on her left, no longer caring whether he saw her or not. Heck, he might not even _be_ in that direction. For all she knew, he could be watching her from a mile away.

"Stupid dog demons and their super-senses," she grumbled, wheeling her bike around.

The return trip had seemed much longer than the outgoing one. Pedaling all the way back to that first village had felt like a chore, and by the time Kagome reunited with the others, she was flat-out exhausted. Emotionally and physically.

Soon, she'd probably be able to add 'spiritually' to the list as well.

Miroku had worked his magic like always—securing them lodgings at the home of the village elder after performing a dubious double exorcism. Inuyasha and Kikyou had a room to themselves, thankfully, with Kagome and the others staying in a larger room adjacent to theirs. She prayed to Kami above that the walls would be thick enough to block out sound. If she had to listen to those two humping all night, she might literally gouge out her own eardrums with a blunt arrowhead. If that was even possible.

_Probably not_, Kagome thought dejectedly.

She stared morosely into the flames of the hearth, mechanically shoveling rice and fish chunks into her mouth. It was the first solid meal she'd had in days, and she couldn't even properly enjoy it. Everything tasted like sawdust in her current state of depression.

The others weren't talking much at dinner, and it took Kagome a while to realize that her black mood was the cause of their unease. Attempting to lighten the situation, she smiled winningly, a few grains of rice falling from her lips.

She had the feeling nobody was fooled, but they didn't say anything, either. Eventually, conversation resumed as normal.

_They probably think I'm still sulking over Kikyou joining the group_, Kagome figured, gulping down water like she'd just finished crossing a desert.

While Kikyou's irritating presence wasn't the chief source of Kagome's anxiety, it certainly didn't help matters. Ever since Kikyou had started traveling with them several weeks ago, Inuyasha had been nothing short of horrible to Kagome, seemingly going out of his way to make her miserable. He treated her with more contempt now than he ever had before, as if he needed to prove to Kikyou that he harbored no trace of warm feeling toward her shabby reincarnation.

Strangely, Kagome and Inuyasha hadn't quarreled much over the past few weeks. Instead of starting heated arguments, he had treated her mostly with harsh disdain, and Kagome found that she actually _missed_ their dumb bickering. It had been light, petty—yet almost affectionate at times. Mostly their quarrels had stemmed from his over-protectiveness, and so Kagome supposed she shouldn't be all that surprised that their days of arguing were over. Now that he had Kikyou back, Inuyasha had made it _abundantly_ clear that he couldn't care less whether Kagome lived or died.

She sighed, drawing her knees to her chest. The futon beneath her felt wonderfully soft, but Kagome was far too troubled to rest. She felt trapped between two worlds, between two different universes of dreams and expectations. The modern world was her home, the one place where she was beginning to believe she truly belonged. In present-day Japan lived her family who loved her, and there were no demons to fight or shards to collect. How trivial studying and homework seemed compared to life in Sengoku Jidai, where she had few friends and a legion of enemies, and where the only boy she'd ever fallen in love with had so coldly cast her aside in favor of a girl who wasn't even flesh and blood.

She had considered leaving the past altogether, and she almost certainly would have, if not for _him_.

Kagome stood, padding over to the small window behind her. She gazed out across the marshy fields of rice, blue eyes scanning the darkness for a glint of gold. Was he out there even now—watching, _waiting_?

She could leave Sengoku Jidai. She could say good riddance to Inuyasha for tearing out her heart and stomping it in the dust. She could pawn her responsibilities off on Kikyou without too much guilt. She could say goodbye to her friends forever, and although she would cry over them for a while, eventually she would be able to move on with her life.

But she couldn't allow _him_ to make good on his dark promises. She could never live with herself if she left her friends to face his wrath. And it would be terrible indeed. Kagome was under no illusions about his strength or theirs. There was simply no comparison.

Inuyasha had gotten in a few lucky shots against him, but they were mostly like bee stings—minor annoyances which left no lasting mark. While Kagome herself had apparently damaged him to a greater extent, she could almost laugh at the idea of _her_ facing off against him with her meager bow and arrows. He'd probably arch one silver brow and reduce her to a pile of ashes on the spot.

No, she couldn't leave—not _yet_, anyway. Not until she fulfilled her end of the bargain.

Extremely weary all of a sudden, Kagome tiptoed back over to her futon, careful not to wake her sleeping companions. She lay down, curling onto her side as she drew the thin white blanket up to her chin.

_Soon_, she told herself, her heavy eyelids drifting closed. _It'll all be over soon._

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A few hours later, Kagome awoke with a start.

Youki lashed across her consciousness like a whip, sharp and fast and stinging. She scrambled out of the futon, springing to her feet in a cold sweat. Her breathing was shallow and quick, and she glanced about her in a panic, checking to see if anyone else had been alerted to the demon's caustic presence.

But her friends slept on unaware, their features peaceful and relaxed. A little of her tension bled away at the sight. As usual, this peculiar summons had been directed at her and her alone.

A moment passed before his youki struck out at her again, angry and insistent. It carried with it an air of impatience, and Kagome wondered how long he had been attempting to reach her. She was certain that the level of hostility she'd experience would be directly proportional to time.

_Ugh, I'm thinking in terms of math_, Kagome despaired, cradling her face in her hands. _This isn't a good sign._

She tread lightly across the wooden floor, making her way toward the exit. She was almost scot-free when her foot landed on the one creaky floorboard in the whole entire room—a floorboard which just happened to be right next to the ear of the world's lightest sleeper. Kagome froze, staring down at Miroku with bated breath.

"Hmm?" the monk murmured, cracking open an eye. "Is something wrong, Kagome-sama?"

"No, I just…"

… _have to go meet up with a bloodthirsty, sociopathic demon lord for a few hours or he'll kill us all,_ her idiotic mind supplied unhelpfully. _No big deal._

"…can't sleep," she finished in a lame whisper.

"Ah," he said sympathetically, propping himself up on one elbow. "It is not easy to rest when your mind is troubled." His tone dropped an octave, his hand snaking its way up the back of her thigh. "You know what helps me put my thoughts at ease, Kagome-sama…?"

Her fingers itched with the urge to slap, but she resisted the impulse, unwilling to draw more unnecessary attention than she already had. Instead, she shook off his wandering hand with quiet dignity and kicked him in the shoulder.

"Pervert!" she snapped in a hushed voice. "I'm going outside to get some air."

At the doorway, she slipped into her pair of black loafers and gently slid back the screen, walking quietly down the short hallway. She passed Inuyasha and Kikyou's room, cringing at the soft little moans escaping through the flimsy shouji screen door. Fists clenching at her sides, Kagome glared heavenward.

_Okay, so I know I only asked You to make the _walls_ soundproof, but come on, cut me some slack here! _

Gritting her teeth, Kagome continued on her course, practically stomping her way down the rest of the hall. It's not like those idiots would hear her over all that sex-noise, anyway. And even if she _did_ manage to disturb them, it'd only serve them right for ruining her life.

Once outside, blanketed by the cool darkness of night, Kagome felt the heat of her temper dissipate, leaving an ominous chill in her blood. She'd been so distracted by Inuyasha and Kikyou's antics that she'd forgotten the main reason why she'd stormed out of that house in the first place.

Shivering slightly, she crossed her arms under her chest, wincing when her fingers pressed a bit too hard on the fresh bruises hidden beneath the right sleeve of her cardigan. The pain was a vivid reminder of what had transpired the previous evening, of what had happened when she'd attempted to defy _him_.

She'd gotten carried away. Last night had been her first real breakthrough, and she'd been so caught up in that brief moment of victory that she'd refused his orders to stop. She'd simply shrugged off his words—surely she'd misheard him, anyway—and pursued that elusive thread of magic until his youki had slammed down before her like an iron gate, the fingers of his good hand curling vise-like around her upper arm as he'd flung her back. She'd hit the ground hard, crumpling like a rag doll, her eyes watering in pain. Yet through the sheen of her tears, she'd seen something even more alarming than his sudden act of violence. Something that had frozen the blood in her veins.

Of course, she'd been frightened of him before that moment. Who wouldn't be?—it was only natural for a human such as herself to possess a healthy fear of powerful, potentially lethal demonic creatures. She doubted she'd have survived long in this era otherwise.

No, the fear she'd felt last night had been an entirely different sort. When she'd seen that _look_ in his reddened eyes, a primal sort of terror had overtaken her unlike any she'd ever experienced before. It had welled up from the most primitive part of her brain, telling her to run, telling her to hide, telling her to fight, telling her to do _anything_—anything but lay there helplessly like she had been, gazing up at him with wide, terrified eyes.

It had been the fear of something far worse than death that had driven her to her feet and propelled her through the forest with more speed than she'd ever believed possible. Something that had followed her through the night and haunted her daylight hours. Something that scared her even now as she made eye contact with him across the rice fields at the edge of town.

He stood out against the darkness like a spirit from another world. A faint white glow surrounded him, illuminating his sharp, angelic features and making him seem not entirely real. His silvery-white hair waved in the gentle breeze like a sheet of silk, his swords and spiked armor gleaming in the moonlight.

He stared dispassionately at her as she approached him, but Kagome could feel the simmer of his rage.

"What kept you?"

She tensed, not expecting to hear such a strong undercurrent of anger in his tone.

_He must _really_ be furious with me_, she thought in dread.

"Gomen, Sesshoumaru-sama," she answered cautiously, being extra polite by _not_ making the use of his honorific sarcastic for a change. "I was sleeping."

Golden eyes flicked over her face briefly, lingering for a moment on the dark half-circles smudging the skin beneath her lower lashes. The sky seemed to lighten a fraction as she felt his fury subside. Perhaps his lordship had condescended to recall that sleep was, in fact, a necessary component of human survival. A component which he, in his superior youkai wisdom, had seen fit to deprive her of for almost _an entire week_.

"Come," he said tonelessly, turning on his heel.

Kagome fell into step behind him without a word of protest, nearly jogging to keep up with his long strides. He led her into the woods at the far edge of the rice paddies, only stopping once they were a fair distance in. Lowering himself gracefully to the grassy floor, he reclined against a tree trunk, and Kagome followed him down, kneeling at his left side.

He offered her his empty sleeve, and she accepted it mutely, rolling back the fabric with practiced ease and exposing the stump of pale, sculpted flesh underneath. As he reigned in his youki, dropping his defenses, she took what remained of his left arm gently in her hands, her eyelids sliding swiftly shut.

Reiki extended outward from her fingertips, tingeing her skin and his with a soft pink glow. Carefully, she probed his crippled appendage with spiritual energy, slipping past the latent youki that hovered like dark clouds in her mind's eye. Months ago, when she'd not been able to control her aura so well, she'd accidentally brushed those clouds with her reiki and ended up giving his stump a pretty nasty burn.

_Yeah, he hadn't been too happy about that, _she recalled uneasily.

The haze of dark energy grew thickest around the white-hot magic of the seal, his youkai blood still fighting to contain the threat of Kagome's enchantment. When she'd unknowingly laid this curse upon him during their very first encounter, his defenses had sprung into action even in his weakened state, preventing the seal from spreading out from the initial point of contact. Kagome's magic had remained isolated at the source of his injury, in a weird kind of quarantine.

Powerful as Sesshoumaru was, he'd been unable to reverse the spell on his own, and this was, apparently, a source of great irritation to the proud daiyoukai. The problem was…

Kagome didn't know how to undo the seal either.

Tendrils of her reiki unfurled, touching lightly against the glorious confusion before her. The magic of the seal resonated with her own, humming low in recognition. It was difficult for Kagome to describe the nature of the enchantment. The closest thing she could compare it to was a tangle of magic threads. A brilliant, burning web of chaos, born from her raw, instinctual response to Sesshoumaru's terrible power.

She still didn't know exactly how she'd managed to get one over on the Lord of the Western Lands. The only thing she could figure was that when she'd pulled Tessaiga free in the demon's graveyard, she'd somehow, in her state of sheer panic, imbued it with a flood of raw spiritual energy which had later found an outlet in the severing of Sesshoumaru's left foreleg.

It wouldn't be the first time she had used her miko powers unexpectedly in a pinch. Even during her first trip down the well, it had been a burst of reiki from her palms which had saved her from becoming Mistress Centipede's newest tasty snack.

Of course, Sesshoumaru hadn't believed her claims of ignorance...at first. However, after several sessions of near total failure—where only his stark intimidation of her had been able to prompt even a fizzle of reiki—to sessions in which she'd nearly amputated the _rest_ of his arm, she could tell that he was starting to see the light.

_Yes,_ his narrowed eyes had seemed to say, _she truly _is_ incompetent enough to curse this Sesshoumaru unintentionally._

But then, gradually, Kagome's control over her spiritual powers had begun to improve. She'd been able to touch the seal for the first time without scorching Sesshoumaru in the process and had at last been able to get a decent idea of what she was up against—the knowledge of which had nearly sent her running for the hills.

Dispelling this enchantment would be no easy matter, especially for a woefully inexperienced miko such as herself. When Kagome had timidly suggested he might be better off going to Kikyou for aid, the glare he'd given her had told her precisely where she could shove _that_ little piece of advice.

"This seal is your doing, miko," he'd said in a voice that could freeze over all seven hells and then some. "_You_ will see it undone."

So here they were, weeks later, with only a small amount of progress to show for it. And last night, after _days_ without sleep, when she'd finally succeeded in unraveling a small part of that god-awfully convoluted seal, he'd snarled at her, roughed her up, and scared the living daylights out of her with his creepy red-eyed look. Even when she'd singed his hair during one of their previous encounters he hadn't lost it quite like _that_.

She just hadn't understood his reaction at all—didn't he _want_ his arm to grow back?

His temperamental behavior was enough to bring any miko to her wit's end—and Kagome was already halfway there on a _good_ day. She just hoped he would permit her to do her job from now on so that they could both be done with this business and go their separate ways.

Kagome frowned in concentration, testing for a weakness in the messy, intricate fabric of her spell. Fingers of reiki pulled and prodded at the dormant magic, and soon she could feel the seal bending under her will like never before. Last night, she realized, had been a turning point for her as a priestess. Last night she had discovered something fundamental about her spiritual power, something she couldn't believe she hadn't picked up on before.

Her reiki was not a weapon. It was not a tool. It was _her_—her essence, her very soul.

"Become the arrow," Kaede had always barked at her during archery practice, and it had been all Kagome could do not to roll her eyes at the old lady's annoying, zen-like nonsense. "Ye _must_ become the arrow, child."

But Granny Kaede hadn't been trying to imitate the Buddha. She'd only been telling Kagome to change her _perspective_. Such a little thing, yet it had made all the difference in the world.

This raw, wild magic before her, strong enough to turn even the limb of a great daiyoukai into a useless stump, was just as much a part of her as the reiki emanating from her fingertips. That didn't necessarily mean she could control it, per se; there were a lot of things about herself which weren't always within her control. Like her pesky emotions. Or the state of her hair on a bad day.

But she could at least try to work through the kinks and make some sense of it all.

_Become the arrow_.

She searched deeper, losing herself within the magic of the seal. And that's when she saw it at last—another loose thread in the fabric. Wisps of reiki seized upon this imperfection, twisting it, stretching it, pulling part of the seal away with a brilliant _crack_—

"That's enough."

Kagome's eyes flew open, his words dousing her like a pitcher of ice-water. She sucked in a breath of air, her right hand still clutching the remnant of his upper arm. As she struggled to regain her bearings, strong fingers seized her wrist, lifting her hand from the stump.

He didn't fling her away from him like last time, but he didn't release her either. She blinked, looking up at him in mild confusion, wondering vaguely at how soft the ground was when suddenly all the color drained from her face.

That was the moment Kagome realized she was sitting in Sesshoumaru's lap.

_What?—how?—ohmygodi'mgonnadie!_

She yelped, toppling over to the side, her hip smacking the hard ground. She pushed herself up with her left hand, her right arm still held firmly in his grip. A tiny gasp escaped her lips when he pressed his clawed thumb against the center of her palm, her fingers uncurling reflexively at the slight prick of pain. Reiki crackled briefly in the air around her fingertips.

"Your skills have improved," he remarked lowly, studying her open hand with interest.

Kagome watched him in growing discomfort, fighting the urge to squirm under the intensity of his regard.

"Why did you stop me?" she asked in a soft, wary voice, warmth rising faintly in her cheeks.

It was a bold move to interrogate the Lord of the Western Lands, but the question had been burning on the tip of Kagome's tongue for almost twenty-four hours straight—since the first time he'd forcibly halted her progress last night.

Sesshoumaru was a logical creature. He was the poster-boy for stoic rationalists everywhere. Yet it made absolutely no sense why he would deliberately interrupt her when she'd finally started to make some headway toward lifting the curse. Not only that, he'd done it _twice_.

All his behavior up until now had been perfectly reasonable. He'd sought out Kagome in order to break the seal because it was preventing the regeneration of his own arm and killing any other youkai arms he affixed to the stump. A logical, practical course of action. As time had passed, he'd started coming to her with increasing regularity, their nighttime meetings slowly becoming _nightly_ meetings. Kagome could understand that, too. Her miko abilities had sharpened, and he was probably impatient to have his arm back once and for all. Maybe he was starting to fall behind on his to-do list of killing and maiming.

Whatever the reason, Kagome could understand his urgency. She was fairly eager to have this whole ordeal behind her as well. So, _why_? Why all this 'hurry up and wait'?

Deep yellow eyes slid from her hand to her face. For a heartbeat he held her gaze, and Kagome could see that his was shadowed, dark with something that had nothing to do with the lateness of the hour. Gooseflesh rose on her skin. Absurdly, she found herself wishing for a pair of jeans instead of her short green skirt.

She felt vulnerable, exposed. Her blood stirred once again with that strange, primal fear. Something had changed between them. Something had taken place last night which had altered the dynamic of their weird relationship.

_Or maybe this is how it's been all along_, a voice of doubt whispered in her mind, _only you've been too dumb to see it. _

An eternity seemed to pass as he stared at her in that darkly contemplative way. No one had ever looked at her like that before. It was similar to anger, but _deeper_ somehow…brooding—like the silence that had descended on her earlier that day during her bike ride.

Was it…hatred?

"You should rest, miko."

Unceremoniously, he dropped her wrist, and Kagome fell backward with an "oomph!" He rose to his feet in one fluid motion, not a single blade of grass marring the pearly white silk of his hakama. Kagome, on the other hand, could see little twigs and leaf bits stuck to the sleeves of her cardigan, and there might very well be a spider web caught in her hair. She scowled, still sitting there with her bare legs askew in the underbrush.

_The universe is just so unfair_, she grumbled inwardly. How could it bestow such spotless perfection on a crazy, violent jerk like him?

"I will return for you in three days' time," he announced as he began to walk away. At the edge of the small clearing he paused, casting a sharp glance at her over his shoulder, the ghost of a smirk on his lips. "Don't keep me waiting when I do."

Kagome's jaw clenched as she watched him disappear into the depths of the woods. _What a prick!_

It was a while before she picked herself up off the ground and trudged back to the village. Nestled beneath the covers of her futon once again, Kagome inspected her palm in a shaft of moonlight from the window. In the center was a tiny red dot where the tip of his claw had pierced her skin.

_At this rate, I'll _never_ be able to get rid of that stupid seal_, she thought bitterly. _Why can't he see that?_

The idea that the daiyoukai might be trying to prolong their time together didn't occur to Kagome. _The_ Sesshoumaru, stalling on _her_ account? Such a notion was too ridiculous—too _dangerous_—to contemplate. If she started thinking along _those_ lines, she'd have to revisit that look of his again, and Kami knows what kind of havoc that might wreak on her neatly-ordered worldview.

So she lay her hand down against the futon and let out a tired sigh.

She'd save those thoughts for another day.


	2. Chapter Two

**DISCLAIMER: I still don't own Inuyasha...**

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**Chapter Two  
**

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Sesshoumaru tore through the night sky in his true form, massive paws trampling down the clouds which obscured the moon's sallow face. His powerful lungs drank deeply from the frigid air around him, purging away the last traces of her maddening scent.

If only the haze of memory could be so easily dispelled.

In his mind she still lay sprawled before him, her strange, inadequate clothing scarcely covering past the swell of her hips, moonlight ghosting over her naked thighs. Her voice was soft with caution as she addressed him, her pulse fluttering like moth wings beneath her delicate skin.

"_Why did you stop me?" _

The daiyoukai growled low in his throat.

Foolish girl. It was clear she mistook the frequency of his visits for desperation. As if his power could be so greatly diminished by the absence of one limb. Ally and enemy alike still quailed before him. None was his equal. His supremacy over the Western Lands remained unrivalled and unquestioned.

No. This had never been about the arm.

It had been about the defiant flash in her eyes as she'd leveled his father's sword against him. It had been about the determined set of her jaw, the heady thrum of power in her blood, the indescribable threat that had suddenly presented itself in human form.

"What _are_ you?" he had demanded in dark wonder.

Even now, months later, Sesshoumaru could not say.

Crimson eyes glared down at the tiny village below him. In one of those miserable hovels the miko would be sleeping soundly, her mind as free as his was imprisoned.

Since that day in the demon's graveyard, she had become a plague upon his thoughts. Lying alone on the rocky ground, bloody and maimed and disgraced, her insolent face had been all he could see, her voice a ceaseless, taunting echo in his ears. Inuyasha may have been the one to sever his arm, but he could never have wielded Tessaiga without that damnable girl. Miko, sorceress_—_whatever she was_—she_ had been the one responsible for Sesshoumaru's defeat. _She_ had done this to him.

And she would answer for it.

After his wounds had closed, the daiyoukai had sought out the source of his torment, watching her from a distance, her blunted senses none-the-wiser to his presence. Huddled near a campfire, the girl before him had born little resemblance to the detestable phantom conjured from his fevered memories.

Her azure eyes had gleamed like jewels in the reflected heat of the flames, the faint red bow of her lips curving into a smile as she'd gazed down at the kitsune cub dozing in her lap. Sesshoumaru remembered how the firelight had warmed her fair skin and lent a muted glow to the dark hair tumbling freely down her back and shoulders, its clean scent drifting toward him on the breeze.

Immune though he had believed himself to be, the daiyoukai had never been ignorant to the charms of mortal flesh. Hadn't that woman Izayoi been lovely as well?

Sesshoumaru had been unfortunate enough to hear them rutting once—Izayoi and his father—and the shameful sound of it had forever tarnished the daiyoukai's opinion of the Inu no Taishou.

_Chichi-ue, _he mused now in scorn, staring up at the cold, brittle stars. _Did you know those breathy sighs were heralding your doom? _

_Did you even care?_

For what seemed like hours, Sesshoumaru had studied the miko through the simmering haze of the campfire, the fever of her magic burning beneath his skin. His wretched stump had throbbed viciously, his features darkening in pain.

Nothing about her had stricken him as particularly remarkable. He had encountered far more capable priestesses than she, yet none had succeeded in laying so much as a scratch on his armor, let alone afflicting him with lingering curse. He had simply been careless during the battle. In underestimating his half-brother's ability to wield Tessaiga, he must have provided her with an opening as well.

As he'd stood there seething, the miko had glanced abruptly in his direction, stilling the air in his lungs. He had concealed his youki perfectly—she should never have been able to detect him. Yet her head had tilted faintly in question, a slight knit in her brow. Under her scrutiny, the reiki trapped in his mutilated appendage had flared hotly, and Sesshoumaru had bitten back a snarl at its sear.

Clawed fingers had flexed, curling like talons as he'd stalked forward, yet before the circle of firelight could reveal him, he'd sensed a familiar presence approaching quickly through the forest. Amber eyes narrowing to slits, Sesshoumaru had reluctantly turned away from the enigma before him, disappearing into the night.

With each encounter that had followed, his troubling preoccupation with his half-brother's miko had only intensified. Like the seal in his flesh, the thought of her had persisted—an irritating splinter which he could not seem to dislodge. Instead, it had burrowed deeper, leaching black poison into his blood, consuming him from within.

Convinced that her stubborn magic lay at the heart of his madness, he had confronted her at last, threatening to slay her companions if she did not break the enchantment. She had complied, but her obvious lack of training had made progress difficult in the beginning, her slowness affording him ample opportunity to observe her more closely.

Her presence had both soothed and stoked his unsettling fascination, and as her ability to focus reiki had strengthened, his own control had begun to crumble. He had started summoning her with increasing regularity, awaiting their nocturnal meetings with growing impatience. He had found himself anticipating her pleasant scent, the sound of her voice, the warmth of her touch against his cool, scarred skin. He had caught himself gazing at her without reservation as she worked to lift the curse, his eyes tracing the delicate contours of her face, the pale smooth column of her neck, the slenderness of her arms and the fullness of her chest. His traitorous thoughts had wandered further still, sliding beneath the fabric of her unusual clothes, imagining hidden flesh and how it might taste…

Sesshoumaru could no longer deny that he wanted her, and with the resentment that had accompanied that admission, a sinister doubt had surfaced in his mind. A doubt he'd only given voice to in that moment when the miko finally succeeded in destroying a part of the seal.

What if the curse was not the true cause of his fixation? What if this madness persisted even after her magic had been removed?

_This girl, this _human_, _he had thought furiously_, what has she done to me?_

Her disobedience had been the final straw. He had commanded her to stop, and when she'd refused, he had snapped, his careful restraint fast incinerating in the firestorm of his rage. He'd thrown her from him as his eyes had flooded red. For a moment she had simply lain there, prone and fearful, and the beast in him had roared with savage need.

As she'd clambered to her feet, he had seen the raw terror mirrored in her eyes and thought that she would never return to him willingly after that. Throughout the following day, he had pursued her, poised to intercept her if she attempted to flee his lands. Yet she had not fled, and after an agonizing wait, she had answered his summons—wary, but for the most part unafraid. And then, in a curious blend of relief and inexplicable frustration, he had known.

The girl…she had not understood what she'd seen the night before.

This time, after another part of the seal had broken with a thunderous crack, she had obeyed his orders to stop, though not without question. As he'd held her fragile wrist in his hand, he'd felt the creep of that insidious doubt entering his mind once again. Without warning, he had released her and risen to his feet.

He needed time to think about what he would do if the curse turned out not to be the cause of his predicament. He needed space to regain his sense of calm.

He needed to get away from this miko before he did something he would most certainly regret.

"…three days' time," he had told her as he'd left her sitting there unhappily in the dirt.

Three days…

Sesshoumaru dashed across the starry sky, nearing his destination at last. He landed soundlessly at the edge of a wild field, transforming the moment his claws touched the ground. Tall grass swayed around his booted feet, the gentle breeze ruffling through his hair and the silky fur of his pelt. In the distance, Ah-Un slumbered on, his dark bulk rising obtrusively from the plain like a living, breathing boulder.

He had barely taken two steps in the direction of the dragon when he heard an exclamation of delight and saw a small bright creature hurtling toward him, a much duller one in tow.

"Get back here, human!" Jakken wailed, brandishing his wooden staff futilely at the child running ahead of him. "How dare you approach Sesshoumaru-sama without permission!"

The little girl, of course, ignored him. She skidded to a halt only once she had reached a close, yet respectful, distance, staring up at Sesshoumaru with an adoration he had never understood.

She beamed, a few gaps still apparent in the rows of her teeth. "Rin is so happy to see you again, Sesshoumaru-sama!"

Sesshoumaru said nothing, his golden eyes slanting toward Jakken.

"Why," he spoke to the imp, "is Rin awake at this hour?"

Jakken trembled, fumbling with his staff. "Mi-milord, I—"

"Rin wanted to wait up for you, Sesshoumaru-sama," the child interjected in a wavering voice, ducking her head contritely. "Rin is sorry."

"See, milord!" Jakken blabbered. His stubby green finger pointed accusingly at Rin. "It was all _her_ fault, not mine!"

Sesshoumaru's jaw tightened in irritation.

"Jakken," he said quietly.

"Y-yes, milord?"

Bulbous yellow eyes peered up at him hopefully, blinking in question when the shadow of Sesshoumaru's boot fell over his face. The imp barely had time to yelp as the daiyoukai's foot drove him headfirst to the ground.

While his useless vassal spat up a mouthful of earth, Sesshoumaru approached Rin, whose head was still bowed deeply in shame. Even her normally jaunty ponytail seemed to hang limp in remorse. His fingers rested lightly in her dark hair, gently tilting back her head. Large brown eyes looked up at him timidly.

"I am not angry with you," he said, calmly holding her gaze. "Now, go to sleep."

Her face split into another toothy grin. "Hai, Sesshoumaru-sama!"

He watched as she bounded away, tucking herself into Ah-Un's warmth. Without sparing Jakken so much as a backward glance, Sesshoumaru wandered toward a distant corner of the field. Here, the grass grew sparsely, eventually giving way to sheer rock near the jagged edge of a cliff.

Pebbles skittered across stone as Sesshoumaru stepped up to the very edge, his eyes and thoughts fixing upon a point in the distance. In the butchered remains of his left arm, he registered a subtle twinge.

These next three days, he mused darkly, might well prove to be the longest in his very long life.

* * *

Higurashi Kagome had never felt better.

Of course, that was a bit of an overstatement. But her mood _had_ improved a great deal over the past two days. Two wonderful, Sesshoumaru-free days.

She sighed happily, leaning back against the smooth bark of a maple tree. They had been wending their way toward Edo village when a bout of weakness had forced Kikyou—and by extension the rest of the group—to halt their travels for the day. Not that Kagome was complaining. Normally, Inuyasha drove them onward at a breakneck pace, and it was nice to finally have some time to relax and enjoy the scenery for a change.

It was a beautiful afternoon in early spring. Life had returned to the dead winter landscape, painting it in broad strokes of green. Soft new grass tickled at Kagome's bare legs. On a thin stalk near her shoe, an inquisitive beetle perched precariously, seeming to consider whether or not it should make the jump. As the insect wavered, Kagome's gaze shifted elsewhere.

In the near distance, Shippou was chasing a kitten-sized Kirara through a crop of wildflowers, leaving a cloud of scattered petals in his wake, while Miroku and Sango busied themselves with building a fire. Kagome watched them exchange a few friendly smiles and glances, but from the way the monk kept eyeing Sango's backside when she wasn't looking, Kagome knew the peace wasn't going to last.

Sure enough, only minutes later, a resounding _smack_ split the quiet air, setting the birds at the edge of the forest to flight. Somewhere amidst the shadows of those ancient trees, Kikyou would be absorbing the souls of freshly-departed young women, Inuyasha no doubt crouched loyally at her side as he waited for his lover to regain her strength.

Kagome wondered what sort of feast Kikyou's shinidamachu would bring her this time. How many souls would it take to satisfy that clay body of hers? Over the past few weeks, her appetite seemed to have grown. Perhaps all the extra activity she was engaging in was starting to take its toll…

Forcibly, Kagome derailed that train of thought. She found herself immensely grateful for the space separating her from that particular pair of lovebirds, although in that moment she didn't think even the Bone-Eater's Well could take her far enough away from them for her peace of mind.

Desperate for any sort of distraction, Kagome began rifling through the fat yellow backpack at her hip. It had been days since she'd even thought about studying. She consulted her schedule planner. Just as she'd feared, she had a mock high school entrance exam coming up in exactly one week. The exam subjects were math and English—her least favorites by far.

Kagome glowered. With a heavy sigh, she extracted her notebook and textbooks. At least she'd be able to get a few good hours of studying in before sundown. Past experience had taught her that reading geometry proofs by firelight was as good a sleep aid as any of Granny Kaede's herbal concoctions, and Kagome had an appointment later this evening. Somehow she doubted Sesshoumaru would be amused to find her once again sleeping through his summons.

_Kami help me if I keep His Highness waiting for more than a second_, she grumbled inwardly, dropping her stack of study materials in her lap. Steeling herself as if for battle, she chose the greater of two evils and cracked open her math notebook first.

_Nose to the grindstone, Higurashi._

Pencil between her teeth, Kagome flipped through the pages, finding the beginning of the photocopied class notes Ayumi had given her during her last visit home. For a good half hour, she poured over theorem after theorem, blue eyes constantly flicking back and forth between the figures in the text and her teacher's commentary, captured in Ayumi's small, neat hand.

_If lines A and B are parallel and line C intersects line A at angle theta, then angle phi must be equal to angle theta—no wait, it's 180 degrees _minus_ angle theta, right? _Kagome's nails scraped her scalp as she clutched at her hair in frustration. _Why can't I keep all these stupid rules straight?!_

She turned back a page in the notes. As her eyes skimmed the page for the relevant theorem, she saw something scribbled in the margin which she hadn't noticed before. A little arrow connected the scribbled note to Theorem 4A: 'Make sure to know this for the exam next week!'

Kagome blinked. "_Next_ week?"

A jolt of panic shot through her. She snatched up her discarded planner, leafing through it furiously. The date she'd marked down for the mock exam was one week later than Ayumi's notes seemed to indicate. Could her friend have written 'next week' by mistake? Kagome considered it highly unlikely. Ayumi was the most diligent person Kagome knew, and one of the top students in their class besides. No, if anyone had made a mistake here, it was Kagome herself.

Which meant that her first high school mock entrance exam…was only two hours away.

Cramming her school things into her backpack, Kagome sprang to her feet, hefting the straps over her shoulders as she rose. She sprinted awkwardly toward the campfire, a look of unadulterated horror on her face.

Seeing her in such a state, Sango and Miroku leapt up from the ground, weapons at the ready.

"A youkai ambush, Kagome-sama?" Miroku inquired grimly. The bright red handprint on his cheek somewhat detracted from his air of grave concern.

"No—it's much worse!" Kagome breathed, skidding to a halt. "Kirara!"

Already transformed, the firecat flew to Kagome's side. Feral red eyes regarded her questioningly.

"Kirara, would you mind taking me home?" Kagome asked hurriedly. "It's an emergency."

The cat youkai rumbled in assent. With a quick thanks, Kagome climbed onto Kirara's back—a task made somewhat difficult by the load of textbooks she was carrying over her shoulders. As they prepared to take off, she felt a light touch on her wrist and glanced down to see Sango looking at her in worry.

"Kagome-chan," the taijiya said softly, dark brown eyes carefully searching Kagome's blue ones. "Did you…see something in the woods?"

"Eh?" Kagome blinked. "See something…?"

Besides youkai, what else could Kagome have seen that would send her running away in a panic? And then it dawned on her.

Oh. Inuyasha and Kikyou.

_She's worried I'm not going to come back this time_, Kagome realized with a pang.

She shook her head, managing a queasy smile. "Don't worry, Sango-chan. I'll be back soon. There's just something I have to take care of right now."

Still not seeming entirely reassured, Sango released her. "Safe travels, then, Kagome-chan."

Kagome nodded as Kirara took abruptly to the sky. Cold air lashed at her cheeks as they rose, whipping back her hair. The ground below them soon blurred as they sped onward toward the Bone-Eater's Well.

Every few seconds, Kagome checked her watch, her anxiety growing with each passing minute. Sweat broke out across her skin, and she silently apologized to Kirara for all the salt she was leaking onto her fur.

It was a solid hour before they began to descend toward Edo village. At the sight of Goshinboku, Kagome sighed wearily in relief.

They touched down a few feet from the well, Kagome's hop from Kirara's back really more of a fall. Picking herself up off the ground, she scrambled over to the portal. Her backpack felt like a ton of bricks.

"Bye, Kirara—thanks again!" she yelled without looking back, hoisting herself over the ledge and into the present.

Through a haze of brilliant purple light, the Modern Era rushed up to meet her. Kagome landed feet first with an "oomph!" She blinked as her eyes adjusted to the dim light of the shrine, hands groping for the rung of a ladder.

"Kagome dear, is that you?" her mother's voice rang out above her.

"Hai, Mama!" Kagome called back.

Her fingers found the first rung, and she started to climb. Above her, Mrs. Higurashi's kind face peeked over the edge of the well, her brow wrinkled in concern.

"I was so worried you'd forgotten about your exam," she said as Kagome at last stepped onto the wooden floor of the shrine. "Your friends came by a while ago looking for you."

Kagome groaned. _So it's true…I really do have an exam to take!_

"I _had_ forgotten, Mama," she admitted reluctantly.

Crouching to the floor right on the spot, she emptied her backpack of the heavy textbooks and notebooks. They wouldn't be of any help to her now.

Her mom leaned the broom she'd been holding against the wall, turning toward the door.

"I'll go get my car keys, dear."

"No, Mama," Kagome said impatiently, shouldering her considerably lightened backpack as she stood. "Thank you, but with this traffic, it'll be a lot faster if I just bike there."

"Are you sure?"

Kagome nodded, dashing past her with a wave. "See you in a few hours!"

Through the open door, Kagome spied her mother's bike standing near the side of the house. She ran over to it at once, knocking back the kickstand as she swung herself into the seat. Forgoing the shrine steps for obvious reasons, she veered off to the right where an almost invisible side path curved past Goshinboku and down the hill to the street.

"Banzai!" she heard her mother shouting after her. Despite herself, Kagome smiled, picking up speed crazy fast as she barreled downward to the sidewalk below.

Her front tire met the pavement with a _bang_, and Kagome swerved hard to the right to avoid launching herself into the street. Her legs pumped like steel pistons as she hurtled onward, pedaling as though her life depended on it. Although in way, she supposed it did.

_My future is here_, she thought with a heavy heart. _In this world._

Luckily, the testing center was within biking distance of Kagome's house. If she'd had to take the train, she would've really been in trouble. As it was though, Kagome arrived at her destination with fifteen minutes to spare. Clumsily securing her mother's bike to the rack outside, she stumbled over to the entrance, all but falling against the cold glass door.

She entered the examination room still breathing like a winded rhinoceros. What she must have looked like to her surprised classmates, she had no idea. Wordlessly, she handed her exam slip over to the proctor, who was glaring at her in stern disapproval. His thin lips pursed as he scanned the slip with beady black eyes, yet after a moment, he directed her to an empty desk.

Kagome collapsed into her seat, digging her pencils and calculator out of her bag. The other students were already filling out the diagnostics portion of the exam, and Kagome rushed to catch up with them. Her dirty, sweaty fingers made gripping her pencil straight a challenge, and she winced visibly at the smudges now marring her answer sheet.

_Well, this is certainly getting off to a great start_, she mused sourly, propping her chin up with her free hand.

Needless to say, the exam was a total disaster. Afterwards, Kagome left the testing center in a daze, looking as though she'd just survived some sort of war.

"Cheer up, Kagome-chan!" Eri said brightly, linking her arm through Kagome's as they walked over to the bike rack. "It's only a mock exam, you know."

_Easy for you to say_, Kagome thought glumly.

Her friends in the Modern Era still had no idea about her life in Sengoku Jidai. Kagome had considered telling them many times, but to be honest, she just didn't know how she could do so without sounding like a lunatic. Still, she wished that they could somehow understand, that they would know how hard she was trying to remain a part of this world. How difficult it was for her to do even the simplest things like homework or showing up for a test on time.

"Well, anyway, I've got to go catch my train!" Eri said, releasing Kagome as she began to hurry toward the station. "Thanks for the gift, by the way!" she called back over her shoulder. "See you tonight!"

"Gift?" Kagome repeated blankly.

"Don't tell me you've forgotten!"

She turned to find Yuka glaring at her, hands on her hips, Ayumi standing at her side. Kagome looked between the two of them, completely at a loss.

"Kagome-chan," Ayumi chided gently, "today is Eri-chan's birthday, remember?"

Kagome blanched. "Ah…"

"So she _did_ forget," Yuka muttered, her eyes slanting toward Ayumi.

"Don't worry, Kagome-chan," Ayumi said softly. "We know you've been preoccupied with your illness. You weren't even able to come downstairs the day we went shopping for Eri-chan's present, so your mom just gave us your share of the money instead." Her wavy hair bounced as she shook her head in sympathy. "Crohn's disease sounds just awful!"

_Crohn's disease? _Kagome wondered. _What the heck has Grandpa been telling them now?_

"Ah, Higurashi!" a familiar voice hailed her from the left. She glanced over to see Hojo making his way toward her, smiling. "I'm glad to see you were feeling well enough to attend the exam." He pulled a small parcel from his pocket. "Please accept this."

"Thanks, Hojo-kun," Kagome responded automatically, taking the box from his hands. Inside was a vial filled with some sort of greenish liquid. "…What is it?"

"An herbal remedy my grandmother told me about," he replied helpfully, raising a finger. "Good for soothing inflamed bowels."

_Inflamed…bowels!?_

Kagome's cheeks burst into flame.

"H-how thoughtful," she stammered, mortified.

Family or not, she was going to _murder_ that old man…

"Well, I'd better get going," he said with a bashful smile, ruffling a hand through his bangs. "See you tonight, I hope?"

Yuka slung an arm around Kagome's rigid shoulders, more than happy to answer for her. "Yep! See you, Hojo-kun!"

As the three girls watched him go, a green sedan drew to a stop in front of the testing center, honking briefly. Ayumi gave an exclamation of surprise.

"Oh! That's my mom. See you this evening," she said, hurrying over to the parked car.

Yuka waved goodbye, but Kagome was still in somewhat of a stupor.

"Wait, what's going on tonight?" she asked Yuka once Ayumi and her mother had driven away, the redness finally starting to recede from her cheeks.

"We're celebrating Eri-chan's birthday, of course!" Yuka said excitedly. "Dinner at Sayuki's followed by karaoke!"

"Oh," Kagome said, perking up, "that sounds—_oh god_…"

Her jaw slammed shut, blue eyes widening in alarm.

In all the confusion over the mock exam, Kagome had completely forgotten about her meeting with Sesshoumaru this evening.

_Idiot, idiot, idiot!_ Her mind sang as she cradled her head in her hands.

"Oh _no_," Yuka growled, taking Kagome by the arms. "You're not bailing on us this time!"

Kagome looked at her apologetically.

"Yuka-chan," she began, "I'm really sorry, but I can't. I've already promised to meet someone."

Yuka's features darkened. "Someone, huh? And who might that be, Kagome-chan? Your two-timing delinquent boyfriend?"

"That guy was _never_ my boyfriend," Kagome snapped. "And there's nothing between us now."

"Oh really? If not him, who are you going to meeting up with then?"

Kagome's jaw clenched.

_His brother, actually_, her mind corrected snidely.

But she wasn't about to open _that_ can of worms.

"That's what I thought," Yuka declared, taking Kagome's silence as confirmation. "Well, that scoundrel can keep himself entertained for one night. You've got plans."

Kagome looked at her desperately.

"Yuka-chan, please…"

But Yuka would not be moved. She shook her head, beginning to walk toward the metro station.

"You'd better be there, Kagome-chan! You can't just keep blowing off your closest friends over some loser guy." She paused, glancing back. "Besides, after forgetting Eri-chan's birthday, showing up to the party is the _least_ you can do!"

Kagome knew that Yuka was right. Her friends in the Modern Era were no less important than her friends in Sengoku Jidai, and Kagome knew she hadn't been treating them fairly. Of course, her dealings with Sesshoumaru were literally a matter of life and death for her companions there, but if she continued to neglect her friendships here, Eri, Ayumi and Yuka might, in a way, end up dead to her, too.

She had to go to this party, at least for a little while.

_It should be okay_, she told herself as the anxiety began to set in. _Sesshoumaru never calls on me until late at night._

Why would this evening be any different?

* * *

For the most part, Eri's birthday dinner at Sayuki's had gone off without a hitch. Besides Kagome, Eri, Ayumi, and Yuka, Hojo and three of his guy friends had also shown up, which had caused the seating arrangement to become somewhat strategic. In an obvious setup attempt by Yuka, Kagome had, of course, been ushered into a spot next to Hojo, and their dinner conversation had mostly consisted of awkward silences and discussions of Kagome's fabricated medical history.

But the food had been great—even if she'd had to eat it while enduring Hojo's sweet, if embarrassing, attentions. Living off the land and poor villagers' charity had made for some bland meals recently, and it was all Kagome could do not to devour her edamame and curry udon like a hungry savage.

Most importantly, though, it was clear that Eri was enjoying herself, and the knowledge warmed Kagome's heart even as unease prickled at the back of her mind. As they left the izakaya restaurant, she seriously considered just turning heel and fleeing for the well, but one pointed glance from Yuka effectively nipped that notion in the bud, though it did little to quell her turbulent thoughts.

Eyes like liquid gold simmered in the shadow of her memories, a phantom twinge stinging in the center of her palm.

"…Higurashi?"

Kagome jumped as Hojo's hand fell lightly on her shoulder. The rest of the group was several feet ahead of them, and she realized she had just stopped walking in the middle of the street.

"Are you feeling all right?" Hojo's warm brown eyes gleamed with worry. "You're quite pale."

"O-of course!" Kagome replied, forcing a grin. "I was just, uh…thinking about today's mock exam, that's all."

"I see," he said with a nod of understanding. "Try not to dwell on it too much, Higurashi. Such stress can aggravate your condition."

"…Right," Kagome mumbled as she and Hojo resumed their course, quickly catching up with their friends.

A few blocks down, they reached their destination: a popular piano bar which was a personal favorite of Eri's. Even this early in the evening, the bar was already packed with high school and college students, yet they still managed to secure a karaoke room. They played for about an hour, taking turns singing at the mic while the others hung out on the leather couches nearby, talking, laughing and cheering the singer on.

Increasingly, Kagome found herself just going through the motions, hoping she didn't look as much of a nervous wreck as she felt. She accepted a bottle of soda from Hojo with a weak smile. Even without Yuka's machinations, he had continued to stick loyally by her side. He sat down next to her again now, at the end of the couch, and while the rest of their friends were absorbed in watching a comedic duet by Eri and Yuka, he started to speak to her in a low tone.

"Higurashi," he began, Kagome's stomach cart-wheeling at the intent expression on his handsome face, "there's something I've been meaning to ask you…"

Whatever Hojo had been about to say was lost in a roar of applause for Eri and Yuka. Breathless from their performance, the two girls gave an exaggerated bow before returning to the couches, Kagome watching curiously as Yuka extracted something from her purse the moment she sat down.

"Hey everyone," she said, beaming as she waved a bottle of clear liquid from side-to-side, "let's have a drink to celebrate Eri-chan's birthday!"

Her suggestion was met with an enthusiastic cheer, and they began passing the bottle around in a circle. For the sake of camaraderie, Kagome took a tiny sip, cringing as the liquor burned a fiery path down the back of her throat.

"Ugh! Yuka-chan, where did you even get this stuff?" she asked, rinsing her mouth out with soda.

"Found it in my onii-san's room," Yuka answered proudly. "He's not supposed to bring that kind of stuff into the house."

_And that makes it okay for you_ _to take it? _Kagome wondered, her brows lifting quizzically.

When the liquor came around a second time, she politely declined. The others weren't so inhibited. By the time the bottle was empty, even shy, quiet Ayumi was giggling uncontrollably, her cheeks flushed red. Kagome gaped at her in shock.

_No! You're_ _supposed to be the responsible one!_

Karaoke resumed, but the singers' words were so slurred that both audience and performer could barely get through the first twenty seconds of a song without collapsing in a graceless, laughing heap. While their drunken antics were pretty amusing, Kagome was thinking that now might be a good time to slip away. Hojo's friend Yarata spilling a half-full glass of ice water down her back only served to reinforce this line of thinking.

"Well, would you look at the time?" Kagome announced as she stood from the couch, damp shirt sticking uncomfortably to her shoulder blades. "I think I'll call it a night."

"Wait…Kagome-chan," Eri said, taking Kagome by the hand and leaning heavily on her arm. "Please don't go just yet. I've thought of a fun game we can play!"

"A game?"

Eri nodded, her eyes slightly unfocused as she lifted the empty soda bottle clutched in her other hand. She turned herself—and Kagome—toward the rest of the group.

"Who wants to play spin the bottle?" she asked loudly, a devious smile spreading across her face.

A chorus of whistles and cheers rose up from the intoxicated crowd. Kagome just stared.

…_Seriously?_

She sighed. "Eri-chan, I really need to go…"

"Please, Kagome-chan," Eri whined, tugging Kagome back toward her seat. "Just one round, okay?"

Kagome looked into those large, glazed-over eyes and found that she couldn't refuse her.

"…Okay," she relented. "One round."

Several turns later, it looked like Kagome was going to get away scot-free. The bottle hadn't come close to her a single time, opting to favor Eri instead. Even when Yarata's bottle had landed on Hojo, and it had seemed like the two guys would have to kiss, he'd reached over and stolen a kiss from Eri instead, much to her delight.

"It's your turn, Hojo-kun!" Eri giggled, thrusting the bottle into his hands.

For a moment, he looked at it seriously, almost beseechingly, and Kagome reddened in a way that couldn't possibly be blamed on the small amount of alcohol she'd consumed.

The universe had always seen fit to conspire against her. Even before he set the bottle spinning, she knew what the outcome would be.

The open end of the bottle slowed to a stop...

"…It's Kagome!" Yuka proclaimed in triumph, pushing the blue-eyed girl a little too roughly in Hojo's direction.

But Kagome had reached her limit. Refusing to so much as look at Hojo, she jumped to her feet, the sudden change in elevation making her woozy. She hunched over slightly, sweat breaking out faintly across her skin.

"Ka-GUH-gome-chan…" Ayumi hiccupped. "You don't LUH-look so well…"

"Yeah…" Kagome replied, racking her mind for even the flimsiest excuse. "It's…it's my Crohn's."

"Your Crohn's?" Yarata repeated slowly, his brows knitting together in confusion.

"Yeah, it's really flaring up…" Kagome paused, debating whether her freedom was worth the price of her dignity.

_Oh, to heck with pride!_ she thought in fierce determination. _I've got to get out of here!_

"Flaring up…in my bowels," she finished flatly.

"Eww," Eri said, wrinkling her nose in disgust.

The others more or less mirrored her expression.

"So…I'll just be on my way then, eh heh," Kagome chuckled nervously, backing up. "Umm, and…happy birthday, Eri-chan...you're the best!"

Taking advantage of their delayed reaction time, she made a break for the karaoke room's only exit. Barreling past the door, she moved quickly through the bar, scarcely pausing to breathe until she was outside on the street again.

"Man, that was close…" she whispered, inhaling deeply.

Yet before she could take one step in the direction of the metro station, she heard a familiar voice calling her name.

"Higurashi—wait!"

Kagome stiffened, turning slowly to find Hojo approaching her.

"I wanted…" he trailed off, seeming to have difficulty framing his thoughts. "I wanted to make sure you were all right…"

"I'm fine, Hojo-kun," she responded wearily. "I just need to get home."

He nodded, taking another step toward her. And another. And _another_, until less than a foot of air lay between them. Before, inside the piano bar, she'd refused to look at him. Now he was giving her no choice. His dark brown hair was slightly mussed, a soft red tinge dusting his high cheekbones. He frowned a little, studying her with an intensity which somehow seemed inexplicably familiar.

She felt her heartbeat quicken. "Hojo-kun…?"

"You're so beautiful," he said quietly, cool fingers trailing over her cheek.

And then he was leaning forward, his mouth pressing gently against her own.

* * *

One subway ride later, Kagome was still blushing.

Her first kiss...

…And it hadn't been Inuyasha.

She entered her home in somewhat of a daze, trying to shake off her unjustified disappointment as she retrieved her backpack from where she'd left it near the door. Hojo was a great guy—smart and handsome and kind. Any girl would be lucky to get a kiss from him.

...And he'd said she was beautiful…

A fresh wave of color lit her cheeks at the memory.

Sure, Kouga called her beautiful every time he saw her, but never with the same conviction—the same _reverence_—with which Hojo had said it. Even if Kikyou wasn't in the picture, Inuyasha wouldn't have said such a thing to her in a thousand years.

He just wasn't capable of it, the brute.

Once, she'd been under the illusion that it was possible for him to show her such a depth of feeling. Then, when that illusion had been shattered, she'd convinced herself that she was at fault for expecting too much in the first place. He'd twisted her notion of love, her own concept of self-worth. Or, rather, she'd let him.

And, suddenly, Kagome realized that the disappointment she felt was not directed at him, but at herself.

Hojo had given her proof—undeniable evidence that there were men out there in the world capable of caring for her sincerely. She felt like the biggest fool for ever believing she had to settle for the little scraps of affection Inuyasha had occasionally thrown her way.

_Inuyasha, _she reflected sadly, tears pricking at the corners of her eyes even as a heavy weight seemed to lift from her soul, _you never deserved my heart_.

"Kagome?"

She turned to find her mother standing a few feet away, drying her hands on her apron.

"Is something troubling you, dear?" she asked gently, smoothing a stray lock of hair behind Kagome's ear.

Kagome shook her head. "No, I…I actually feel a lot better than I have in a while."

For the first time that day, Kagome's smile came straight from the heart.

"That's good to hear," her mother said, the corners of her eyes crinkling faintly. Her gaze fell on the old yellow backpack suspended from Kagome's shoulders. "You're going back now, aren't you?"

Kagome nodded.

Mrs. Higurashi sighed softly. "I thought so." Her arms enfolded Kagome in a warm embrace. "Take care..."

The walk to the shrine passed in the blink of eye. Next to the well, her mother had left Kagome's discarded school things in a neat stack, and she made quick work of stuffing them into her backpack once again.

Maybe they'd prove more useful to her in the future than they had today.

Warm radiance engulfed her as she stepped off the ledge of the ancient well, five hundred years dissolving in the blink of an eye. Finding handholds in chinks in the wall, Kagome began to climb, her heavy backpack becoming more of a nuisance the higher she rose. Eventually, her fingers tangled in a dense nest of vines, and she was able to pull herself over the rim at last.

She'd half-expected to see Sesshoumaru standing there waiting for her with a murderous glare, but the daiyoukai was nowhere in sight. She couldn't sense his youki, either, nor the fragments of her own magic buried deep within his flesh. Starting to believe she'd actually managed to pull this off, Kagome set out toward Edo village. She'd be more comfortable waiting for Sesshoumaru to summon her there.

Inuyasha's Forest was a dangerous place, especially at night. Kagome was reminded of this fact as she tiptoed through the underbrush, trying not to shiver at how sinister the trees looked in the darkness, unfamiliar youki brushing at the edges of her senses.

Just as the trees began to thin, a sudden crunching noise up ahead had Kagome freezing in her tracks. Petrified, she scanned the shadows, her heart lurching violently when she saw them shift, moonlight glinting off a pair of wicked ivory horns.

Kagome watched the horns move up and down over a strange white shape in the distance. As she continued to stare, the crunching sounds softened eerily. Her skin crawled as she tried to place them. They sounded almost…_wet_.

The white shape had lost its original form, becoming stained with pools of black. It moved limply in time with the horns, and with a thrill of terror, Kagome finally realized what it was.

A human body…and the youkai was feeding on its remains.

Kagome clamped a hand over her mouth, bile rising in her throat. Numbly, she retreated a step, her foot snapping on a twig she'd carefully avoided the first time around.

_How cliché_, she thought ruefully as the demon paused at the sharpness of the sound, white horns slowly turning in her direction, a pair of glowing red eyes locking with her own.

"Another human…" a gravelly voice rumbled in dark amusement. "What luck…"

Instinctively, Kagome reached behind her for her bow and arrows, cold fear spilling down her spine when she remembered she'd left them back by the campfire. Her heavy bag dropped from her shoulders, but before she could even think to flee, the demon lunged, knocking her onto her back, her breath bursting from her lungs.

Clawed fingers pinned her wrists above her head, a huge, bull-like face looming over her, its black lips pulled back in a grin. Dark blood still dripped from its fangs, splattering across her cheek.

"You're a pretty one…" the youkai jeered, its warm breath thick with the odor of blood and decay. Kagome jerked away as a sharp nail trailed down the side of her face. "Perhaps we can have some fun together before I eat your flesh…"

Kagome's eyes burned. She couldn't die. Not like this. Torn apart by some nameless youkai only a short distance from the safety of the village.

It just wasn't fair!

"What…!?"

With a snarl of pain, the youkai abruptly released her. Before she could even process what had happened, green light was slicing through the darkness, carving up her would-be murderer into chunks of steaming meat.

Kagome scrambled backward, tearing her eyes away from the carnage. When at last she hesitantly returned her gaze to the scene before her, she could see a white-clad figure striding toward her through the darkness, ethereal and proud.

"Sesshoumaru…" she breathed, rising unsteadily to her feet.

Never before had she been so happy to see his marked-up face. Yet as her eyes met his across the shrinking distance, her feeling of elation promptly withered in her chest. Maybe that bull-faced demon hadn't been such bad company, after all.

Sesshoumaru's shining yellow eyes were hostile, narrowed, his mouth a razor-thin line. Around him, his youki whirled and crashed like the wind in a storm.

Unconsciously, Kagome took a step back, swallowing past the lump in her throat.

_Oh, boy…_

* * *

**AN:** Bit of a cliffhanger for you guys! ;) Sorry this chapter was so late...I ended up traveling a lot more this past month than I'd anticipated. Thanks SO MUCH for all the reviews, favs and follows for Chapter 1! Your support means so much! :)_  
_


	3. Chapter Three

**DISCLAIMER: Still don't own!**

* * *

**Chapter Three**

* * *

The Lord of the Western Lands was definitely _not_ in a good mood.

As he stalked nearer, Kagome continued to backpedal, her mind racing as she tried to think of a way to defuse the situation.

"Sesshoumaru…_sama_," she began, hastily tacking on the honorific as she raised her hands in supplication, "I'm—_really—_sorry for showing up late again. I, uh…_oomph_!"

Kagome smacked the ground hard, her legs flying out from under her after she'd tripped over something solid lurking in the undergrowth. Wincing slightly, she rubbed her screaming backside, momentarily forgetting the enraged daiyoukai who was closing in on her, radiating certain death.

A startled gasp escaped her as Sesshoumaru hauled her up by the front of her jacket. Kagome's hands flew to his wrist, blue eyes wide with panic as they met his furious stare.

"Se-Sesshoumaru—" she tried again, before his voice cut hers off in a deadly whisper.

"_Who_," the daiyoukai demanded, pulling her closer, "_is he?_"

Kagome gaped. "What…?"

"_Answer me._"

Mere inches separated his face from hers. Kagome could see the crimson leaching steadily into his gaze, his features twisted in an expression of pure rage. The only other time she'd seen him look this unhinged had been several days ago, when he'd flung her roughly to the ground at the end of one of their sessions. She'd been almost as clueless then as she was now.

Almost.

"Please," she choked, looking up at him desperately, "I…I have no idea what you're talking about!"

His eyes bore into hers like hot knives. Yet the skin beneath her clammy fingers was surprisingly cool.

It took every ounce of courage Kagome possessed not to look away. Ill-equipped as she felt for a staring contest with _Sesshoumaru_ of all people, some instinct told her to keep staring back at him like her life depended on it.

_Maybe, _she thought a tad bit hysterically, _it does._

Just as her eyes began to water beneath the strain, she saw the redness in his own start to fade. His grip on her, however, didn't relax in the slightest.

"The human who covered you in his scent," Sesshoumaru rephrased tersely. His golden eyes lowered, lingering on her lips. "What is he to you?"

Kagome squirmed, unnerved by the force and focus of his gaze. Her mouth ran dry as she struggled to formulate a coherent _thought_—let alone an answer to his unfathomable question.

_Why is he acting this way? _she wondered wildly. _Is he…is he talking about _Hojo_…?_

"He…" Kagome said, the word coming out somewhat strangled, "he's just a boy I know from back home."

It was a vague answer, but she prayed it would suffice. As always, though, Kagome's prayers seemed to fall on deaf ears.

"Is that so," he stated, his words an icy whisper on her lips.

Kagome stumbled back as he suddenly released her.

His tone wasn't questioning. In fact, he sounded almost _bored_—but Kagome wasn't fooled. She'd spent enough time in the daiyoukai's company to learn the subtle shades of his displeasure. An almost imperceptible tightening of the jaw. A lightning flash in the mirrored surface of his eyes. A pale shadow darkening his features, throwing their razor sharpness into stark relief.

Intimidating as it was, this was nonetheless familiar territory. Before her was the Sesshoumaru she'd known for months. Cold and unreachable, calculating and perfectly controlled. In all things, including his anger.

_A mask_, a small voice whispered knowingly. If Kagome looked hard enough, she could see the cracks in it even now.

Yet she suppressed that knowledge along with the shiver that accompanied it and allowed herself to pretend that he was still the same. Wasn't there some saying about 'the devil you know…'?

"And where, exactly, is your home, miko?"

The question carried with it the faintest hint of accusation. Deep yellow eyes swept over her form, taking in the sight of her loafers and blue jeans, the cut of her white cotton blouse and brown leather jacket—both of which she now attempted to straighten, her fingers a little fidgety under the scrutiny of his eerily reflective gaze.

"I've often wondered." There was a distinct edge to his seemingly quiet speculation.

Still, Kagome felt more confident before him now than she had earlier this evening. She crossed her arms over her chest, looking at him stubbornly.

"My home," she answered, "is very far away from here."

_And that's all you need to know_, she thought warily.

Revealing the secret of her time travels to her friends in Sengoku Jidai was one thing. They were her trusted companions, and most of them were human, besides. Morbid as it was, the fact remained that they'd all be dead long before her time. Sesshoumaru, on the other hand, was an immortal youkai, and far from friendly. He could very well live to see the Modern Era, and if she let it slip now that she was from the future, who knew what kind of havoc that could wreak on the order of the universe?

This secret was more important than satisfying the curiosity of one powerful demon. It was more important the stab of fear that pierced Kagome at Sesshoumaru's measured approach. It was more important than her very life, than all the lives of her friends put together.

More important, even, than seeing to the end of the Shikon Jewel.

The lines of her face betrayed this importance, and though Kagome could not possibly know it, she bore a stronger resemblance to Midoriko in that one look than Kikyou ever had.

And so when Sesshoumaru stepped up to her, gold eyes glaring as he towered over her by almost a foot, Kagome held her ground.

"Take me there," he said. It was clearly _not_ a request.

Yet Kagome boldly raised her chin.

"No," she replied, blue eyes glinting like chips of glass, "it's not a place where you can go."

_At least_, Kagome mused, thinking suddenly of his _brother' s_ ability to traverse the well, _I hope not_.

Apparently, this had been the wrong thing to say.

Clawed fingers shot out, clamping around her upper arm like iron bands. Kagome flinched, gritting her teeth against the pain. Futilely, she attempted to wrench her arm away, Sesshoumaru's grip merely tightening in response. Kagome stilled as she felt the tips of his claws biting through the supple leather of her jacket.

"_This_ Sesshoumaru," he stated, a low, threatening rumble in his voice, "goes wherever he pleases, human."

Maybe it was bravery. Maybe it was stubborn pride or reckless abandon or the outcome of almost a solid year of disappointment and frustration. Maybe it was simply the loathing in the word "human."

Whatever it was, it gave Kagome the wherewithal to crane back her neck, look him squarely in the eye, and say, with as much steel as she could muster:

"I said, _no_."

* * *

It was rare that the daiyoukai of the Western Lands found himself at a loss.

He could count on one hand the number of humans before her who had dared to so openly defy him.

All of them, of course, were dead.

Yet this girl had defied him at every turn. Since the day he'd first encountered her, glaring up at him from Inuyasha's side, she had been nothing but insolent. In her words, in her actions—as if she lacked the basic sense of self-preservation that kept all other humans in check in his presence.

He thought of Rin, a mere child, and how quick she was to acquiesce to his slightest command. She behaved waywardly on occasion, but such acts, he knew, were never an attempt to flout his authority. They were borne from Rin's youthful curiosity and, more often than not, from her deep affection for Sesshoumaru himself. As such, he found her disobedience amusing rather than insulting.

But the miko was no child. He was unpleasantly reminded of this fact every time he laid eyes on her. The lack of respect she showed him could not be attributed to the ignorance of youth or, he thought acidly, to any sort of misguided affection on her part. There was nothing amusing about her willfulness, and nothing to excuse it.

It was insane, preposterous even, the way she behaved toward him. Perhaps the only thing more absurd than her defiance was his tolerance of it. And yet, here they stood.

"I should kill you," he said to her in a low voice, the words tasting bitter in his mouth.

_I should have killed you long ago. _

He could smell her apprehension, feel the rush of her blood in her veins. He heard the hitch in her breath, the waver in her voice even as she curled her hand into an unsteady fist at her side.

"Go ahead, then, if that's what you want," she responded, the air around them stirring faintly, stinging like the magic buried in his wasted arm. "I won't reveal anything else to you about my home."

It was there again, in the gleam of her eyes. That same, inscrutable look which had sealed his fate months ago in the resting place of his father. How often had he summoned it to mind in the days thereafter? An image which had festered, blossoming into obsession. A relentless torment. A dark and secret pleasure.

_Dangerous_—yet somehow those large expressive eyes of hers had failed to perceive it. She was as oblivious to her effect on him as she was to her own spiritual power, humming in the stillness around them. His gaze fell, dwelling on the creamy stretch of skin below her jaw. How easy it would be, to accept her challenge, to wrap his fingers around her delicate throat and squeeze until the light faded from her infuriating eyes. Then he thought of how she'd managed to survive the deluge of his poison in the demon graveyard, to emerge relatively unscathed from every attack he'd thrown at her and Inuyasha ever since, and suddenly, Sesshoumaru wasn't so sure.

It seemed there was little he _could_ be sure of, wherever this wretched girl was concerned.

"Very well," he said with no particular inflection, golden eyes flicking to blue as his fingers relinquished their hold. "You may keep your precious secrets, priestess."

Clutching at her freed arm, the miko blinked at him in surprise. "Huh?"

She regarded him inquisitively, dark glossy hair flowing down her left shoulder as she tilted her head to the side. Her look was far more appraising than Sesshoumaru liked. The corner of his jaw lifted as he stepped back, somewhat more at ease with those few extra inches of space between them.

"After all," he began again smoothly, smirking a little as he started to turn away, "I doubt you have anything of interest to hide."

He could almost feel the heat of her glare. His smirk deepened as he took a few steps toward the edge of the forest.

"Wait a second!"

Sesshoumaru paused, glancing back at her coolly. One brow arched in question.

She _had_ been glaring at him, but his cold regard effectively damped the fire in her gaze. He watched as she deflated, her cheeks still flushed in a manner he found entirely too appealing.

"Um…" she said hesitantly, her eyes flitting to his empty sleeve, "what about your arm? Didn't you want me to work on the seal tonight?"

"Tomorrow, perhaps," Sesshoumaru answered in a bored tone, running his claws idly through the long silky strands of his hair. "See to it that you bathe in the meantime, miko. The smell of that human offends me."

Flicking his hair over his shoulder, Sesshoumaru continued on his way, leaving the girl there to seethe. The sun would rise soon. Most of the youkai who preyed upon human flesh would be returning to their lairs to slumber. He trusted the priestess had enough sense to reach the village now without incident.

Sesshoumaru frowned as moved through the trees. On a whim, he doubled back in a sweeping circle, following the miko's fading scent to the edge of a small clearing. To his right stood Goshinboku, the tree to which Inuyasha had been confined for almost half a century. A small gash remained where the dead priestess's arrow had pierced the aged bark.

The miko's trail continued ahead of him, ending at an old, dried-up well in the center of the clearing. The Bone-Eater's Well, he seemed to recall. Indeed, as he peered past the mass of vines covering the ledge, he discerned a collection of bones—both human and youkai—littering the dusty bottom.

Sesshoumaru vaulted the ledge, landing lightly amidst the scattered remains. He trailed his claws over the banked dirt and stone as his senses extended outward. There was an echo of magic in this place, a blend of reiki and youki alike. Instantly, the daiyoukai was reminded of the Shikon no Tama.

_Perhaps the magic of this well is linked to that of the Jewel_, he considered, eyes narrowing. _But what is the nature of its power?_

The girl's scent vanished inexplicably beneath his feet. If this well was in fact a portal, as Sesshoumaru suspected, it showed no sign of granting him passage. The magic remained dormant; the way forward, steadfastly barred.

Poisoned fingertips tips curled, carving trenches in a hunk of solid stone. _How irritating._

Sesshoumaru crouched, leaping to the top in a single spring. Shaking the dust from his pelt, he eyed the wooden ledge, contemplating the well and its traveler. That girl was as much a mystery to him now as she had ever been. The Bone-Eater's Well was yet another infuriating riddle of hers, another tantalizing unknown.

Three days had not been enough time for him to come to terms with her. Reluctantly, Sesshoumaru conceded that he may never understand what she was or why her effect on him was so profound.

How effortlessly she brought him to the edge of reason. When he'd seen that bull-faced youkai pin her to the ground, stinking of blood and arousal, he had lashed out instinctively, whips of pure energy materializing at his fingertips, slicing through bone and sinew as easily as air—impotent, in comparison with the white-hot fury that had flared within him when he'd detected another male scent beneath that of the dead youkai.

If she had confirmed his suspicions, if she had looked away even once…

Sesshoumaru's gaze hardened, his hand clenching into a fist. He could not say what he might have done in that moment. So much seemed uncertain. Yet one thing he knew.

This, he vowed.

Golden eyes lifted, glaring up at the cold, pitiless moon.

_I will _not_ become my father._

* * *

Hair still damp from her trip to the stream, Kagome plopped down on Granny Kaede's porch step and basked in the warmth of the sun. Deft fingers sifted through the dark, heavy strands, loosening tangles, while Kagome watched the villagers go about their morning activities. Seeing her, a few of them bowed briefly, though she had to wonder if those bows were really intended for her.

With her own clothes drying on a rack, Kaede had lent Kagome her old miko's garb to wear in the meantime. Kagome had brought a few extra outfits, but she knew her modern clothes made the villagers uncomfortable. Besides, she kind of liked the white kimono shirt, with its long flowing furisode, and the bright red hakama. The only things she wasn't too keen on were the comparisons such an outfit inevitably drew.

Decked out in the traditional attire of a Shinto priestess, Kagome was a dead-ringer for Kikyou. Of course, her eyes were grayish blue instead of brown, her hair a little thicker and wavier than Kikyou's sleek, straight tresses, but even from a short distance, these differences were easily overlooked.

Kagome sighed. She stretched out her legs, toes peeping out from under the hem of her hakama. They wiggled, shiny pink nail polish reflecting the rays of the sun.

_Way cuter than Kikyou's_, Kagome thought smugly.

There was a rustle behind her. Kagome turned to see Granny Kaede emerging from her hut, the heavy noren curtain swinging shut in the doorway. In her hands was a wooden short bow, identical to the one Kagome had unwittingly abandoned yesterday.

"Thought I heard ye return," the old lady greeted gruffly. Most people said 'hello', but not Kaede. She nodded brusquely toward the woods in the distance. "At the edge of yon forest, demon crows have come to roost." The bow dropped into Kagome's lap. "A fine opportunity, methinks, to test thy skill."

Bow in hand, Kagome donned her wooden sandals and followed Kaede to the outskirts of the village, where the trees of Inuyasha's Forest began to thicken. Just as the old priestess had described it, a flock of crow youkai had taken up residence among the heavy boughs of an ancient oak. The tree presided over a small vegetable garden, the owners of which stood a good distance back, eyeing the demons warily. The young wife in particular had a forbidding expression on her face as she clasped her toddler's pudgy fingers in her own.

Unlike the birds they resembled, these crows had a taste for human flesh.

"Miko-sama!" the husband cried in relief as he saw them approach. He ran over, almost falling on his face when he dropped into a bow. "Thank you for coming!"

"No thanks needed," Kaede grunted, not unkindly. "Take ye and the others inside, now, Akito. We shall rid ye of these accursed crows."

The young man nodded, topknot bobbing enthusiastically. "Of course, Kaede-sama. Right away!"

Akito hurried over to his wife and daughter and led them to a hut near the garden's edge. When they were safely inside, Kaede fixed Kagome with a grave look.

"Prepare thyself, child." The old woman shifted, leaning a bit more heavily on her walking stick. "They sense the presence of the Jewel."

But Kagome didn't need Granny Kaede to clue her in on that. Twenty or so triplets of blood red eyes were riveted on the spot just below her neck, where a small chunk of the Shikon no Tama hung suspended from a fine silver chain. During her visit home, Kagome had stored their small cache of Jewel fragments in a pouch in her backpack, but here in the youkai-filled past, she had learned to be more careful, and the shards scarcely left her person.

After all, hadn't it been a demon crow just like these, whose theft of the Jewel had started all this trouble in the first place?

"Yeah," Kagome said, a determined glint in her eye as she nocked an arrow and drew the bowstring back past her cheek, "I'm ready."

_It's payback time, birdbrains._

Kagome took careful aim, the tip of her arrow glowing faintly pink. Eyes narrowed in concentration, she loosed her fingers and let the arrow fly—

—straight into a tree branch above her target's head.

"Oops…" she muttered, fumbling for another arrow. At her side, Kaede gave a weary sigh.

All along the ancient boughs, dark wings began to ruffle. As one, the flock of demons took to sky, temporarily eclipsing the sun. Kagome's next arrow met its mark, but the bird youkai were on them an instant later, swooping and screeching—a swirling confusion of sharp talons and serrated beaks.

Kaede had driven her stick into the ground to create a barrier, and the demons seared as they crashed against the dome of light, the smell of charred feathers soon choking the air. Coughing a little, Kagome readied her bow, struggling to find a decent shot. The demons were moving almost too fast for her eyes to follow, let alone her hands.

_Focus, miko_, a stern voice echoed in her mind. It took Kagome a moment to realize that it wasn't her own.

She closed her eyes, and suddenly, she was there again, in that familiar place of calm. Within her, reiki ebbed and flowed like an ocean tide, and she drew upon it, using her magic to guide the blazing arrowhead straight into her enemy's tiny black heart. Kagome's eyes flew open as the crow fell with a bloodcurdling shriek, the lower half of its body blasted away.

"Aye, that's it!" Kaede shouted, sweat beginning to bead on her wrinkled brow. "Now, see ye to the rest!"

Kagome tapped into the well of her power again, felling a demon with every shot. She'd dispatched about half the crows when the remaining ones began to whirl away. Yet before Kagome could smile in triumph, a high-pitched scream pierced the air.

"_Kimiko!_"

Kagome spun around, taking in the whole scene behind her in one panicked glance. There was the husband, standing frozen in the doorway, an expression of mute terror on his face; the young woman, stumbling through the muddy field, arms outstretched and wailing hysterically; the little girl, stranded just beyond reach, her eyes wide with wonder as she approached the shining bubble of Kaede's barrier on toddling footsteps. And there were the crows—not retreating as Kagome had thought, but circling around, careening toward this newer, easier target.

There was no time to fire ten arrows—there was barely time to fire one. Kagome drew back so fast she thought the string might snap, flinging open the floodgates of her psyche as she never had before. The arrow flared like a miniature sun, a swathe of brilliant light streaking behind it as it intercepted the vicious crows, obliterating the entire flock in a single, fiery sweep.

Kagome collapsed to her knees in the damp earth, the bow sliding weakly from her grasp. Kaede let her rest there for a few minutes before helping her to her feet.

"Ye did well, child," the old priestess said, wrapping Kagome's arm around her shoulders, a thoughtful frown creasing her weathered face. "Well, indeed…"

Together, they walked over to the middle of the garden, where the young woman knelt sobbing as she clutched her daughter Kimiko to her chest. Blank-faced and pale, Akito stood off to the side, apparently still recovering from his shock. Kagome figured that witnessing your daughter almost get torn apart by a flock of bloodthirsty demons could have that effect on a man.

"I only turned my back on Kimi for a moment, and she was _gone_," Akito's wife said, raising her tearstained face. A few dark strands of hair had escaped from the red kerchief covering her head. "But _you_… " She gazed at Kagome in something like awe. "I had not believed the tales were true, but after seeing such power firsthand…" She trailed off, biting her lip as she bowed her head over Kimiko's dark pigtails. "…Thank you, Kikyou-sama. We are forever in your debt."

Kaede stiffened, but Kagome was too tired to take offense. She just sighed.

"No problem."

Having her abilities mistaken for Kikyou's legendary strength hardly seemed like something to complain about, anyway.

As the pair of priestesses slowly made their way back to the village, a strained silence hung between them. Kagome kept feeling like Kaede was glancing at her out of the corner of her eye, although judging by the patch that covered it, this seemed pretty unlikely.

"Thy skills have improved," the elderly miko finally commented as they sat down to eat lunch in her hut. "That last arrow ye fired was some sight."

"…thanks," Kagome mumbled past a mouthful of stew.

There seemed to something on Kaede's mind, something that had been bothering her since the end of their excursion to the edge of town. Kagome wished she'd just spit it out already, but the words that left the old miko's mouth moments later had her quickly regretting that wish.

"Has my sister been instructing ye?"

Kagome set her wooden bowl down with a clatter.

"No," she bit out, blue eyes staring sullenly at her lap.

The idea of training with Kikyou galled Kagome to the core. She spent as little time around the dead priestess as she possibly could. That woman had nearly stolen her soul! Not to mention the damage she'd done to her self-esteem…

But Kagome had no right to take this out on Kaede. It only made sense that she'd be curious about what had prompted Kagome's sudden turnabout in skill. However, admitting the truth—that she'd been guided by the words of her inner Sesshoumaru—would just sound weird. And, probably, insane.

"No, it's just that, well…" She looked up at Kaede, a crooked smile pulling at her lips. "I guess I finally took your advice to heart and learned how to change my perspective."

"Perspective, ye say…" Kaede muttered. Her aged brows drew together in consternation.

Kagome's smile faltered. "You know, all that stuff you told me about 'becoming the arrow'…?"

"Aye, that," her elder remembered with a wave. "'Twas just some fancy talk I picked up from a traveling monk. Nothing else seemed to be getting through to ye, so I thought I'd give it a try."

"Oh," Kagome said, her shoulders falling slack. "I see."

_So much for sage advice,_ she lamented inwardly, shooting an appraising glance at Kaede over the hearth. _Maybe_ _Baa-chan just has _really_ awesome aim…?_

Her one-eyed mentor's inexplicable archery prowess aside, Kagome knew that there was more Kaede could teach her. Before, Kagome hadn't thought much about honing her spiritual strength. With Inuyasha there to protect her, it had seemed almost like a waste of time. All he had ever required of her were her abilities to locate and purify Jewel Shards, and those skills were second-nature.

She had never considered the possibility that he might abandon her. But he _had_. If Sesshoumaru hadn't shown up to intervene, last night's episode with that bull-faced youkai could have turned out quite differently. To survive the rest of her stay in Sengoku Jidai, she was going to have to learn how to protect herself. Working to lift the seal these past few months had given her hope that her miko powers were not as wild and unpredictable as she'd previously thought. The events that had happened earlier today had only served to reassure her on that point. Through her own will, she had shaped her reiki into a deadly blast of pure energy. It hadn't been a mere reaction, or an instinctual response—but an intentional, targeted attack. It made her wonder what else she was capable of. What were the limits of her power? Given enough practice, could she even become as strong as Kikyou?

Kagome wasn't sure, but regardless, it was high time she took some initiative for a change and worked on building her own strength—instead of always relying on others'.

"Kaede-baa-chan," she asked suddenly, "could you teach me how to make a barrier like the one you made today?"

Kaede's visible eye widened briefly in surprise.

"Don't see why not," she responded curtly a moment later, but to Kagome she seemed rather pleased by the request. Her joints cracked as she rose to her feet, fixing the young priestess with a stern look. "But for now ye should rest and recover thy strength."

"But I'm not—"

"If ye do not feel like sleeping," Kaede interrupted stubbornly, "then perhaps ye could help a poor old miko gather herbs."

Kagome watched as Kaede made a show of hobbling about her hut, clearing away the lunch dishes with exaggerated slowness. The young miko sighed in defeat.

"Of course I'll help you, Baa-chan. Which herbs do you need?"

"Wild mint," Kaede replied without missing a beat. "And shiso leaves, if ye see any."

Kagome's brow twitched. _Well, it certainly didn't take her long to consider. _

Grabbing a woven basket from a corner of the hut, Kagome walked outside, squinting as her eyes adjusted to the afternoon sun. The air was warm and humid, and it wasn't long before Kagome began to sweat, dust from the dirt path turning to mud between her toes. She almost regretted forgoing the stuffy white tabi socks that were a traditional part of her uniform.

As she made her way toward the forest, the sight of something familiar in the distance gave her pause. Azure eyes glimmered in recognition, a smile spreading across her face. She sprinted forward at full speed, waving wildly.

"Miroku-san! Sango-chan!" she yelled happily, slamming a hand down on the lid of the basket as it attempted to fly away. "Shippou-chan! Over here!"

Unable to possibly miss her with all the commotion she was making, the approaching figures waved back, Shippou jumping up and down excitedly at Sango's side. Kagome reached them in less than a minute, a few nearby villagers startled by her impropriety as she barreled past them. The basket fell to the ground as she swept Shippou up in a breathless hug, peppering his cute round cheeks with kisses.

"Kagome-chaaaan," he whined, struggling half-heartedly in her grasp. "You're embarrassing me!"

Kagome pulled back a little, grinning at him sheepishly. "Sorry, Shippou-chan. I just couldn't help myself. It feels like I've been away from you guys for two years instead of two days."

She straightened, catching Sango in a quick, tight embrace before giving the firecat on her shoulder an affectionate ear ruffle. "Thanks again for taking me home so quickly, Kirara-chan! Because of you, I made it back just in time."

As she stepped back to beam at Miroku, she finally noticed that something was off. Neither the monk nor the taijiya were quite meeting her gaze, and both of them had remained uncharacteristically silent throughout her greeting. Now that she glanced back at him, even Shippou seemed unusually reserved.

"What's wrong?" she asked slowly, looking around at her group of friends. Her unease grew as she realized something else she had missed. "…Where are Inuyasha and Kikyou?"

She watched Miroku and Sango exchange an uncertain glance before the taijiya's chocolate brown eyes met Kagome's. The corners of her lips descended in a frown.

"Kagome-chan," Sango began softly, hesitantly—before a crisp, cool voice cut her off like a steel blade.

"I take it you've told her, then?"

Sango's expression darkened as Kagome spun around to face an approaching Kikyou, her hand rising unintentionally to the Jewel Shards at the base of her throat. The powerful priestess regarded her reincarnation impassively, her eyes as dark as onyx and twice as cold. Just behind her, Inuyasha stood, ever the faithful watchdog, his arms crossed stiffly over his chest.

Kagome turned her eyes away from him, meeting the stony gaze of her predecessor.

"Told me what?" she questioned warily.

A slight smile formed on Kikyou's lips. Strangely, the gesture made her white face seem even more like an emotionless mask.

"Inuyasha and I are to be married."

* * *

**AN:** As always, thanks a million to all those who've fav'd, followed, and reviewed since the last update! I especially appreciate the feedback - it's so great to hear what you guys think! Sorry this chapter came later than promised. I ended up having to travel AGAIN this month... (grumbles) All I can say is I'll try to do better next time. :)

Anyway, it looks like things are about to get even more complicated for Kagome, doesn't it? ;) Till next time...


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